convert
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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converts,
present (3rd person singular)
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converted,
past participle, past
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converting
present participle
-
to change (something) into a different form or properties; transmute; transform.
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to cause to adopt a different religion, political doctrine, opinion, etc..
to convert the heathen.
- Synonyms:
- proselytize
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to turn to another or a particular use or purpose; divert from the original or intended use.
They converted the study into a nursery for the baby.
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to modify (something) so as to serve a different function.
to convert an automobile factory to the manufacture of tanks.
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to obtain an equivalent value for in an exchange or calculation, as money or units of measurement.
to convert bank notes into gold; to convert yards into meters.
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Finance. to exchange voluntarily (a bond or preferred stock) into another security, usually common stock, because of the greater value of the latter.
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to change in character; cause to turn from an evil life to a righteous one.
to convert a criminal.
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Chemistry. to cause (a substance) to undergo a chemical change.
to convert sugar into alcohol.
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to invert or transpose.
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Law.
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to assume unlawful rights of ownership of (personal property).
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to change the form of (property), as from realty to personalty or vice versa.
-
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to appropriate wrongfully to one's own use.
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Logic. to transpose the subject and predicate of (a proposition) by conversion.
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Computers. to subject to conversion.
verb (used without object)
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converts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
converted,
past participle, past
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converting
present participle
-
to become converted.
-
Football. to make a conversion.
noun
verb
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to change or adapt the form, character, or function of; transform
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to cause (someone) to change in opinion, belief, etc
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to change (a person or his way of life, etc) for the better
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(intr) to admit of being changed (into)
the table converts into a tray
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(also intr) to change or be changed into another chemical compound or physical state
to convert water into ice
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law
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to assume unlawful proprietary rights over (personal property)
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to change (property) from realty into personalty or vice versa
-
-
(also intr) rugby to make a conversion after (a try)
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logic to transpose the subject and predicate of (a proposition) by conversion
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to change (a value or measurement) from one system of units to another
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to exchange (a security or bond) for something of equivalent value
noun
Synonym Usage
See transform.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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convertsimple
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convertssimple
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have convertedperfect
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has convertedperfect
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am convertingprogressive
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are convertingprogressive
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is convertingprogressive
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have been convertingperfect progressive
-
has been convertingperfect progressive
Past
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convertedsimple
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had convertedperfect
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was convertingprogressive
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were convertingprogressive
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had been convertingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of convert1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English verb converten, from Latin convertere “to change completely,” equivalent to con- intensive prefix + vertere “to turn”; noun convert replacing converse, Middle English convers, ultimately from Latin conversus; see also converse 2, verse 1
Origin of convert2
By shortening of convertible
Explanation
Think of the word convert as meaning "change," whether it is a person who adopts a new belief, or a changing action, such as when you convert dollars into euros. Many times we can catch a word's meaning by looking at its origins. In this case, the Latin con means "around," while vertere means "turn." So we can figure that convert means to "turn around," an object or one's thoughts on an idea. For example, you might convert a meat eater into a vegetarian or an empty-nester might convert the kids' bedroom into an exercise room.
Vocabulary lists containing convert
Tier 2 Words for the SBAC ELA Items
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
England Hockey "wasn't ready to win" in 2016, she said, arguing that the organisation lacked the commercial, marketing and participation infrastructure needed to convert Olympic success into long-term growth.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
As a result, when the collision occurs, the comparatively slower three-pronged gluon junction should be easier to stop and convert into new particles than the rapidly moving quarks.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
"It's down to my job to try and convert those to come and watch the Blast and ultimately the County Championship," says Lancashire's Gidney.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
“It’s a test, really, of whether the state can govern well enough to convert that population into productivity.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
It was natural that the convert Aron should work on Cal.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
“We think the lockup-expiry overhang is an opportunity rather than a risk, offering a rare entry point into a generational compounder that converts energy into swarming,” the bullish analyst said in a recent client note.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026
Luke Tryl, who heads the More in Common research non-profit, told AFP Farage's core supporters "seem largely undeterred" but that newer Reform converts "might now be wavering".
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
Lumilens’s first product, an optical transceiver, converts electrical signals into light so data can travel over fiber-optic cables.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
During the reaction, sodium hydroxide captures carbon released from the plastics and converts it into solid sodium carbonate.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 31, 2026
The standard question rule in English converts You are seeing what? into What are you seeing? and hence You are looking at what? into What are you looking at?
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
In rats, for example, excess histidine can be converted into histamine, which activates brain receptors involved in controlling food intake.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 19, 2026
The company is investing $725 million to expand generator production at an Indiana plant and it converted another plant in Kansas to produce turbine engines popular with data centers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
From there, the couple relocated to the Highland Gardens, a hotel in Raman’s district converted into homeless housing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
A total of 34 spot kicks were taken – 31 of which were successfully converted – as Paul Heckingbottom's men booked their place in round four.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
The departure facility isn’t more than an old, converted ranger station beyond some gates to the National Park.
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
Taking the RMD from one account and converting from another does not work.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
The new deal also gives wireless carrier Verizon Communications a minority stake in MobileX by converting a loan into equity, the people said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Women's prisons are also less secure than male prisons, so converting them would not be a quick or simple task.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
They are generally easier to sell than illiquid Level 3 assets, but converting them to cash can take time, especially during market stress.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
Delicate silver and gold threads unraveled and wove themselves into the fragile wings of the frozen mariposas, converting the tiny creatures into magical designs stitched meticulously into the bodice of La Llorona’s gown.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
